Why Do We Send Sons To Private School And Daughters To Government Schools?

I grew up in Delhi of the ‘90s, a time of cable TV, 15-minute news bulletins, and institutionalised and unchecked sexism.

As the only child of South Indian parents, I was told from a young age that I have to excel at school. My mother’s insistence on waking me up at 5.30 am and going over the lessons of the last day, seemed tyrannical at that point. Especially when I found that a lot of my playmates in our middle-class neighbourhood did not have to endure this pressure.

Many of them came from households where their brothers went to private schools, while they went to the local sarkaari school.

Turns out almost 3 decades later, Delhi is still thinks that only its sons deserve quality education and all the opportunities it brings. The recent Delhi Economic Survey found out that access to education remains a very gendered right, and as usual, the odds are stacked against young women.

Number of boys enrolled in private schools vs government schools in Delhi

According to reports analysing the survey’s findings, a total 6.28 lakh girl students were enrolled in private schools. The same figure for boys has stood at 9.37 lakhs. According to the survey, the same data for government school differs drastically, registering enrolment of 8.10 lakh girls and 7.18 lakh boys.

According to reports, the gap between boy and girl students enrolled in private schools has been a general trend in Delhi’s neighbouring states, Haryana and Rajasthan too.

What the numbers mean

The state of Delhi’s government schools has been the topic of much discussion, thanks to the AAP government’s insistence on making the improvement of the public education system a priority. Atishi Marlena has been a pivotal part of the move towards improving the dismal state of government schools of Delhi. Before this push, these institutions, which were responsible for the education of lakhs of children, lacked basic provisions. So, why were we sending our daughters in large numbers to these schools?

Because, we still believe that educating daughters is a “waste”. The gap between the literacy rates of men and women in India are proof of this, still prevalent, prejudice. According to the findings of the 2011 census, there is a gap of almost 20% between the literacy rates of Indian men and Indian women. Patriarchal traditions dictate that the only roles that women should be prepared for, are those of wife and mother. And who needs a college degree for that?

The question of privilege

Sons get the lion’s share of the family’s resources, from food to the money allocated for school fees. Government schools provide heavily subsidised rates and that is where the daughters of the family are sent. There are underprivileged families which cannot send their children to expensive private schools, irrespective of their gender. But it cannot be denied that the numbers on the Delhi Economic Survey, make it clear that even those who can afford the school fees, do not deem their girls worthy of a good education.